Victor Osimhen was the star of the entertaining show at Leicester on Thursday night, scoring twice as Napoli fought back for a 2-2 draw. After being the hardest working side on the night, the Partenopei somehow were trailing by two goals. It took the genius and the determination of the Nigerian to salvage the night.
That said, it took a team effort to complete the comeback and one unsung hero in the shape of Lorenzo Insigne.
The game was anything but boring. The English side, buoyed by a noisy King Power Stadium proved to be an irritating opponent, with pacy players from the defensive line to the strikers. With constant pressure, non-stop running, and forcing mistakes at each end of the pitch, the hosts caused problems. Nevertheless, Napoli were the side with more attempts. Twenty-two shots, seven of which were on target, while the hosts managed seven in total with five between the posts.
While the headlines will probably be going Osimhen’s way, some credit has got to go Insigne’s. The captain led Napoli throughout the 74 minutes he played, even making appearances in his own box and around it preventing danger making an interception and a tackle.
The skipper made sure that his opponents never rested when they had the ball, pressing relentlessly and forcing mistakes more than anybody. To add to that, aside from midfielder Fabian Ruiz, the Napoli captain was the attacking player with the most touches in his own box.
Insigne saw how Leicester were making life difficult for his side and was the first to move off the ball and encourage his side to follow. He kept dragging former Atalanta right-back Timothy Castagne and made runs off the ball in an attempt to find a breakthrough. Insigne was constantly staying wide and stretching the defensive line but also dropping to offer passing options and creativity to go forward.
The No.24 was the most creative player on the pitch with four key passes. He mightn’t have scored nor assisted, but Insigne was a vital part of the build-up for the first Napoli goal, constantly pushing the ball towards the box.
With the positive mentality of always going towards goal, creating trouble for the opponents, tracking back and doing crucial defensive work while leading the attack, Insigne’s performance inspired the comeback for Napoli.